Trump Introduces Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as Running Mate: 'My First Choice'

Midtown Manhattan, NY — Donald Trump officially announced Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate Saturday, saying Pence was his "first choice" for vice president despite reports that circulated Friday saying Trump asked whether he could get out of announcing Pence on his ticket.

Trump spoke for the majority of the news conference in Midtown Manhattan before Pence came on stage to accept the invitation to serve.

"So I'm here today to introduce the man who will be my partner on the campaign and in the White House to fix our rigged system and to make America safe again and great again," Trump said.

Before getting into the reasoning behind why he chose Pence, Trump spoke about the terror attack in Nice, France, saying the horror beyond belief will never stop and called for new leadership and new thinking.

He also briefly addressed the attempted coup in Turkey.

"We wish them well, but it looks like they are resolving the difficulty," he said.

SEE ALSO:

Mike Pence On The Issues: Abortion, Gay Rights, Immigration and More

Trump talked about Pence's record as governor of Indiana, saying he admired the work he had done there, citing the low unemployment rate, the increased labor force, private sector job growth and Indiana's budget.

During the conference, Trump also hit upon several issues where he and Pence don't exactly see eye-to-eye. He said no one listened to him against going to war in Iraq because he was a businessman, not mentioning that Pence, who was a congressman at the time, voted to authorize the war and was a co-sponsor of the war resolution.

Trump bashed NAFTA, signed under President Bill Clinton and a regular target for him in his anti-free trade campaign position, but didn't note that Pence has a long history of voting for free trade. CNN noted Pence has backed every free trade deal up for a vote in his 12 years in Congress.

The decision to choose Pence came from Indiana, Trump said, the very state whose primary became the last beacon of hope for the Never Trump forces to try and stop the now presumptive nominee from getting the nomination. At the time, Pence endorsed Ted Cruz , but he was visibly reluctant to throw his support behind Cruz. He commended Trump before begrudgingly announcing that he will be voting for Cruz.

"It was the single greatest non-endorsement I've ever had in my life," Trump said Saturday.

Trump claims he studied the state during the primary and was impressed by Pence's record.

Pence, who said he was humbled by the invitation to serve, had two simple reasons for accepting: He said he believed in Republican leadership and Hillary Clinton can never become president of the United States of America.

He introduced himself as a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order, but said he was just a small town boy from southern Indiana who had a front-row seat to the American dream. He thanked Trump and his family and called on voters to help elect Trump as the 45th President of the United States.

Pence, who was up for reelection in November, withdrew from the race on Friday shortly before the official deadline. Reporters waited in anticipation at the Secretary of State's office in Indiana to see if Pence would remove himself from the race as Trump's earlier scheduled announcement for 11 a.m. Friday was postponed after the attack in Nice, France. Despite being reported that Trump would pick Pence as his running mate, the presumptive Republican nominee had not officially made the announcement at the time, briefly leaving the Indiana governor's political future in limbo before announcing the decision on Twitter.

This report will be updated.

Image Credit: Donald Trump via the Trump Campaign, Mike Pence: official photo from governor's office